The Loire Valley and especially Blois
As we are still in lockdown with restaurants closed since last October, I had my second birthday at home today. We usually dine in a Michelin starred restaurant and often go away for a few days to celebrate. But Jean Michel ordered gourmet takeaway from L’Orangerie du Château that arrived in the boxes below. It …
Continue reading “A Second Lockdown Birthday – Un deuxième anniversaire confiné”
I don’t usually buy tulips because the garden is full of them but the Rotary Club was still them today at the market for medical research. Je n’ai pas l’habitude d’acheter des tulipes alors qu’il y en a tant dans le jardin mais le club Rotary en vendait aujourd’hui au marché pour soutenir la recherche …
Continue reading “Tulips for Charity – Des tulipes de bienfaisance”
Today, we became eligible for the Pfizer vaccine (over 60) and thanks to a little foresight, we had appointments this morning at the Vaccination Centre in Blois, usually a gymnasium. It was extremely well organized and we were in and out in 45 minutes, having passed through the hands, so to speak, of 10 different …
The Grain Market in Blois is actually a fairly modern building (inaugurated in 1850. It replaced the old 13th century wheat market. The materials used (polychrome brick and stone), the slate roof and the turrets that flank the building, are reminiscent of the Louis XII wing of Blois Castle. Inside, four rows of stone pillars …
Blois has the most wonderful rose garden. This door is usually open from the end of May to the end of September. Let’s hope we will be free to visit it. Blois possède une roseraie merveilleuse. Cet accès est ouvert de la fin du mois de mai jusqu’à fin septembre. Espérons que nous pouvons le …
Continue reading “The Rose Garden Passage – Passage de la roseraie”
We had a windy, rainy weekend but it cleared up long enough for a neighbourhood walk. The temperatures will rise slowly this week and, with a bit of luck, we might soon be vaccinated. Le week-end a été venteux et pluvieux mais on a réussi quand même à faire une promenade d’une heure dans notre …
We have found a more cheerful backdrop for our mid morning coffee at the Saturday market in Blois. Even open air cafés seem a long way off. Nous avons trouvé un fond plus gai pour notre café de onze heures au marché de samedi à Blois. Même les cafés terrasses semblent bien loin encore.
The wall is part of the old city walls in Blois. The two men are professionals. Do you know what they are doing? Ce mur fait partie de l’ancienne enceinte de Blois. Les deux hommes sont des professionnels. Est-ce que vous savez ce qu’ils font?
The spires are those of the 12th to 13th century church of Saint Nicolas while the Tour du Foix is one of the last vestiges of the 13th century feudal fortifications. Behind it is the much later Gaston d’Orleans wing of Blois Castle, built in the first half of the 17th century. Les flèches sont …
When I read English novels as a teenager growing up in tropical Queensland, decades before the Internet, I had no idea what most of the flowers the authors talked about even looked like. Coming across a carpet of periwinkles in the woods is always a source of amazement to me. The name comes from the …